Description

Up until the early 1600s, Belfast was a small settlement. Due to industrialisation, however, it expanded rapidly and a Royal Charter granted it town status in 1613. It had a relatively small town hall during this time, but the town continued to grow and by 1801 it housed over 20,000 people. In 1888, Belfast was granted city status by Queen Victoria. This fantastic development prompted the Belfast Corporation (now Belfast City Council) to commission a city hall to celebrate this new status. They launched a competition for architects to submit their ideas for designs.

The winner was man named Alfred Brumwell Thomas. His winning design was chosen because it was so unlike typical Victorian buildings at the time. Rather, it sought to bring back a classical Renaissance. By this time Belfast was the biggest city on the island of Ireland and this new design intended to make that statement.